Hello Frank,

I hope this finds you and Irma doing okay. I wanted to tell you if possible, you might want to move up your plans a bit for coming out for a visit. It might already be getting kind of warm in July but if you could figure out a way to come right now I think y'all would be glad you did. This is the most beautiful time of year I'm finding out from the locals. The cactus is in bloom and wildflowers are growing like crazy. It's nice and warm during the day and gets pretty chilly at night. Perfect weather, which is something hard to find in Texas. If you can, come on out. If not, I understand. We'll still have some great places to go in July but we will need to pray for good air-conditioning. We'll take your car!!

I've settled in here pretty well. I met the neighbors down the road a while back and we've visited a bit. They even invited me down for steaks on the grill!  I don't know how well she cooks on anything else but that lady knows a thing or two about grilling steaks....and making banana pudding. Whooee, I ate well that night. I guess I'm going to need to get a grill again. When I sold my old one before moving I didn't think I would ever want to grill again. That must have been the depression talking. She cooked over mesquite which I've never done. I've always cooked with propane but not any more. I'm going to start picking up mesquite as I find it lying around.....and there is a lot of it around. I'll probably burn up the first few things I try to cook but I'm looking forward to trying it out.

The old Chevy gave up the ghost the other day. I was coming back from a run to Alpine and found myself sitting on the tailgate waving frantically at people passing by. It's amazing how many people start concentrating on the road when they see a person waving for help. They don't even try to slow down. A few good souls smiled and waved and then kept on going. Finally, a lady in a Cadillac threw on her brakes and backed up when she passed. I'll give you three guesses who the driver was and the first two don't count. You are correct sir! It was the widow lady I helped with her groceries when I first moved here. Why did it have to be her?! I had finally been cool enough on the phone that she had stopped calling. Now I feel obligated to return the favor of a much needed ride back to town. The wrecker service I called charged me an arm and a leg to haul the old beast (truck, not widow lady) home where it sits under my shade tree looking mighty sullen. It has been my only transportation since I moved so I guess I better consider replacing it. I'm renting a Jeep Wrangler right now and I think I might just buy one of those instead of another pickup. Who knows...

That ride back to town in the Cadillac would have been pleasant if I hadn't had to be so nice to the widow lady. I feel terrible saying that. She's been nothing but nice to me and I avoid her like the plague. I guess I'm afraid she's looking for another husband and I sure ain't looking for another wife! I'll go ahead and take her out to eat one night to pay her back for the ride but if she starts calling again I'll have to speak to her about it. I guess you could say "I'll have to be frank" with her....get it? Frank? Okay, so it was corny. I'm kind of out of practice. I'll work on that before y'all come out. HEY, why don't y'all come on out and we can go out to eat with widow lady....you know, I guess I better start using her name. Widow lady takes longer to write than Jo. Her name's Jo. Ew, that makes me feel like we're friends or something. 

Not much else to write about. If nothing else, Fort Davis is quiet and pretty slow moving compared to Hurst. I guess I'll end this before you get too bored. Oh yeah, I'm going to keep my old truck. I think I might try a restoration. I know that's probably a silly idea, especially since I sat out there on the side of the road not having a clue why it died on me. It's been a long time since I played like I was a gifted auto mechanic.

Take care. Give Irma a hug for me....and seriously, y'all think about coming on out. Protect me from old widow Jo!

Bert